On TV, as in life, Julia Louis-Dreyfus stands out. During a midday blitz through Barneys department store, she attracts attention from shoppers. One woman praises Louis-Dreyfus' shiny, straight hair. Another admires her silver Roger Vivier heels. Yet a third professes her love of Louis-Dreyfus' CBS comedy, The New Adventures of Old Christine

As evidenced by the fact I'm still here writing these words, I have not retired. I have a few more years to go. Many of my friends, however, already are sipping margaritas poolside. I'd like to think I'm not a bitter man, but I have to confess to some jealousy. How could they be footloose and fancy free so soon? Why didn't they have to lumber into their 60s like me?

Tina Fey, who has left Saturday Night Live, is writer, executive producer and star of 30 Rock, which she describes as a half-hour "workplace comedy." Fey plays Liz Lemon, a single gal who is head writer on a demanding, live TV program in New York City. All seems fine until the network puts blowhard Jack Donaghy, played by Alec Baldwin, in charge of the show.

There are still things only PBS will do and shows only PBS will give us. For example, no other network would bring Broadway's most rapturous musical to TV, as the public service does tonight with Live from Lincoln Center: The Light in the Piazza (8 ET/PT, times may vary). And if you love touching stories, soaring music and fabulous acting, there is no other place to be.

Despite early controversy about onscreen pot-smoking, That '70s Show went on to become a big hit, and it is now the oldest live-action comedy on network TV. Wednesday, it kicks off an eighth and almost certainly final season with a one-hour opener

I never thought I'd miss hanging out in a funeral home, but I do. Already. For those of you who are not addicted to HBO's Six Feet Under, which had its finale Sunday night, it was a show that for the past five seasons let viewers peek in on the life of the Fishers, a somewhat dysfunctional family who ran a funeral business in Los Angeles.

Actor Michael J. Fox is pushing Congress hard to lift President Bush's restrictions on embryonic stem cell research. "Embryonic stem cell research holds enormous promise," said Fox, who suffers from Parkinson's disease. Stem cell research on human embryos holds the most promise in the search for cures for a list of diseases, including Alzheimer's.